_edited.png)
In recent years, there has been a shift in the understanding and treatment of mental health. While there is still stigma surrounding mental health, and especially mental illness, more advocates, treatments, and practices are becoming available. Mental health is a topic that has been written about numerous times, and one short story that is recognizable to many is “The Yellow Wallpaper” by Charlotte Perkins Gilman.
Mental Health in “The Yellow Wallpaper”
Charlotte Perkins Gilman (1860-1935) was an American author who challenged the cultural and societal norms of the time with regard to mental health and women's rights. Her 1892 short story “The Yellow Wallpaper” has intrigued audiences for more than 130 years. Loosely based on her own experiences suffering from postpartum depression, she wrote the short horror story as a way to show the dangers of women’s illnesses being belittled by doctors. In the short story, the main female protagonist is locked away in a room by her husband. She is not allowed to go for walks, speak to others, or do work. As a result, her mental health declines even more due to her isolation. The “rest cure” was thought to be the way to cure women of hysteria or mental health issues. This cure was developed by men in the medical field who thought they knew best how to treat women. The short story is written like a diary, and in it she writes that she is not taken seriously by her husband or brother, both of whom are doctors. More than a century after it was written, “The Yellow Wallpaper” highlights the importance of not ignoring symptoms of mental illness, listening to people when they share their struggles, and the importance of understanding and treating mental illness.
Understanding Mental Health
Over the course of the 21st century, there have been many advancements in the treatment of mental health disorders. Although there is still a long way to go to provide access to everyone who wants or needs it, the general understanding of how to help has improved immeasurably (but there’s still a lot of room for improvement!). Mental health should be looked at in a similar way to physical ailments: if something hurts or feels off, you go to the doctor. In a similar way, if something feels off mentally, it should be no different to head to the doctor to feel better. So, why is it? Why is there still a stigma surrounding mental health treatment?
People with mental illness, which is sometimes referred to as an invisible illness, have dealt with an abundance of misunderstandings and stereotypes over the years. The misinformation, stigma, and lack of outreach and support has caused some people not to seek treatment, which can have lasting consequences. Mental illness is serious and thus requires support and treatment, but unfortunately, too many times it is not taken seriously, as seen in “The Yellow Wallpaper.” Gilman’s character is belittled and even laughed at, and she suffers needlessly because of it. People around her did not listen or take the time to try to understand what she was feeling. This highlights the importance of understanding and acknowledging the struggles that people face.
Mental Health: Not A Taboo
Mental health is something that needs to be talked about and acknowledged. It should not be treated as a taboo subject! In fact, it is much more damaging to individuals suffering from mental health disorders when their symptoms and stories are ignored. Public Health education plays such an important role here, as there are still so many myths, stereotypes, and misconceptions about mental health illness and treatments. Education, mentoring, and discussing topics surrounding mental health will lead to more people understanding mental health, treatment plans, and more. The more people are aware of the realities of mental health, the more they can stay on top of their own mental health.
Acknowledging Mental Health
Every human has their own individual journey with their mental health. Some people may struggle more than others, just as with any other health condition. It can be hard to talk about mental health struggles, as for some, it is a deeply personal journey. Plus, there are the stereotypes of people being “crazy”, or in the case of The Yellow Wallpaper, being diagnosed with “hysteria”.
Unfortunately, there used to be (and certainly continues to be in many areas) multiple stigmas surrounding mental health, and it was something that people were told they should not speak of openly. In “The Yellow Wallpaper,” Gilman’s character is secluded from the world, from her family, and told not to speak of what she was going through. She wrote that she disagreed with the treatment, but since her brother and husband were doctors, she went along with what they told her to do. She was not allowed to work or go outside for long periods of time, and her husband was constantly making her feel like a burden. The treatment of those who struggled with mental health in the past was inhumane and brutal, and Charlotte Perkins Gilman saw this and advocated for change. Both in her writing and in her life, she showed passion to create real change, and from the time she was active in the late 1800s and early 1900s, there is evidence of change surrounding the opinion and understanding of women and mental health. Her work undeniably brought the topic of mental health into the literary industry, which opened the door for other authors to write about mental health.
There are many resources online that can help folks to better understand their own mental health and create actionable steps to find treatment plans suitable for their needs. There is online counseling (such as BetterHelp), free lines to call (The Crisis Support Services is a 24/7 hotline, which can be reached at 1-800-273-8255), and more. If you think you or someone you know could benefit from mental health services or resources, it is worth looking into these support services. Like any other illness, mental illness has multiple ways of treatment, prevention, and care. It is important to know what is available, if not only for yourself, but for others as well.
Support Systems
Support systems are a crucial part of anyone's life, and can be so important when struggling with mental health. Your support system can be made up of a variety of different people with different roles, but they should all:
Have your best interest at heart
Be able to have difficult conversations with you
Give you their honest opinion, even if it is something that you do not want to hear
Support you from near and far with what you are going through
Have appropriate boundaries
Of course, every individual's support system will look different. But identifying a strong group of people that you know have your back is so helpful. You can find a support system in friends, family members, doctors, coworkers, therapists, and more.
You may be asking, “but why is a support system so important?” and that’s a valid question. The reason support systems are so important when dealing with mental health struggles is because mental illness can feel extremely isolating. It can make people feel alone, and it is in times like those that people need to be reminded that they are not alone. Having a secure system can also help to ensure people are getting treatment that benefits them. The character from “The Yellow Wallpaper” did not have any support during her postpartum depression and anxiety, and she was sequestered away as was the societal norm for the time. Support systems can prevent people from having treatment that is not the right fit for them.
Mental Health: Treatment Options
In 2023, there are many more treatment options available than there were in 1892, when “The Yellow Wallpaper” was written. It can be confusing to navigate all the available options, but here are some common treatments:
Therapy (of which, there are many different kinds of specific therapies)
Medication
Inpatient and Outpatient treatment facilities
Coping strategies
Each person's treatment plan will look different, but knowing all the options available can give people a powerful boost. This is why education is so important. When creating a treatment plan, it is good to know what is available, and to make adjustments as necessary. There are some levels of treatment that are more intense than others, such as inpatient facilities, which is where individuals will stay in a residential treatment program for a period of time. Other treatment programs are less intense, with therapy sessions set up weekly, biweekly, or even as needed. Learning coping strategies from inpatient and outpatient facilities as well as from therapy can be used as a tool in everyday life. Coping strategies can include strategies to deal with the environment around us and can be really useful. Medication can also supplement any of the previously mentioned treatment plans. Some people's journey will include changing treatment plans, while others may tend to stick with the same plan. And both of these are okay! It’s good to remember that some treatments may work for a certain period of time and may need to be adjusted later on. What works for someone at one point in their mental health journey may not always bring the same results, so it’s important to monitor symptoms and how treatment is affecting the mental health of the individual. Staying on top of your mental health and any treatment is an important part of living and thriving with mental illness, and there are many ways to track how you are doing. Journaling, talking with someone, even making use of different apps can help monitor and show when it may be time to reevaluate treatment.
The Yellow Wallpaper: What We Can Learn
More than a century after the release of “The Yellow Wallpaper,” people are still reading it, and through reading it, learning about the treatment of mental health at the turn of the 20th century. There are many takeaways that readers can still absorb from Gilman’s writing. Mental health is not something that can or should be ignored; isolating and belittling people struggling with mental illness is unacceptable and not at all a helpful way to deal with mental illness. Further, people's opinions of their course of treatment should be taken into account: everyone has the right to a treatment plan that works for them, not a cookie-cutter solution. Mental health education is crucial and can lead to lives saved. Making use of online resources such as hotlines, online therapy, and government associated information pages can be useful. If you need help, there are many options to get it, and it is so important to seek it out. If you’ve read “The Yellow Wallpaper,” feel free to comment below and let’s start a discussion.
Comments